Mediating Communities: The Mediality of Verbatim Theatre in Alecky Blythe’s London Road.

This paper explores Alecky Blythe’s fusion of verbatim and musical theatre forms in London Road as an innovative mode of engaging with recorded speech material. This aesthetic choice foregrounds the mediality of verbatim theatre and music, shifting the emphasis from authentic vocal reproduction to embodied, sensory communication. Songs function as inter-semiotic translations, highlighting the material presence of voice and physical expression on stage. By juxtaposing speech and song, Blythe’s play exposes the constructed and mediated nature of signification, making the act of representation itself a form of presence on stage. Central to the production is the chorus, which, this paper argues, enacts collective civic experience and fosters a reflective spectatorial community. While bearing witness to shared trauma, it also invites ethical engagement and participatory reflection. In this way, Blythe’s hybrid form moves beyond the mere transmission of real voices to become a conduit for public dialogue and communal introspection.